3 Ways to Add Weight to Your Emergency Fund

emergency jar with change in it

Financial experts recommend an emergency fund to cover at least three to six months worth of expenses in case you get sick, lose your job, or your car breaks down. Other financial advisors suggest an emergency fund that covers 12 months worth of expenses, but that’s wishful thinking.

A recent study released by BMO Harris Bank found that 35 percent of Florida parents with young children do not have money set aside for a financial emergency, slightly above the national average (32 percent). An additional one in 10 has emergency savings of less than $1,000. Parents of young children have put away an average of $5,681. Future parents have saved less—$3,831.

You’ll pay a higher price if you don’t have enough in emergency savings when an unfortunate situation happens. You don’t want to depend on credit cards, friends and relatives, or a high-interest, short-term loan.

So what can you do? It’s never too late to start saving. Even $10 or $15 weekly or monthly is a step in the right direction. Think of it as just giving up a lunch out or skipping a daily lottery ticket. You’ll never even miss it if you open a separate savings account and set up auto deposit.

Here are three ways to help bulk up your emergency fund:

  1. Get a temp or part-time job. Sign up with a nearby temporary placement agency that can connect you with flexible evening or weekend work. Set up an account with an online service like Care.com where you can offer your babysitting, pet sitting, cleaning, or house sitting services. TaskRabbit is another platform where you can offer your services such as handyman, moving, or personal assistance.
  1. Sell your stuff. One man’s junk is another man’s treasure, right? It’s also a quick way to make money. If you’ve got tech devices, furniture, shoes, or practically anything that you’re never going to use again that’s in good shape, you can usually find a buyer on Craigslist or PoshMark.
  1. Rent your dependable car or your coveted parking space. While you aren’t driving your car, why not let other people use it? Through sites like RelayRides and JustShareIt, you can contribute to the collaborative economy and make money. And as your car is being used, you can rent out your space with ParkingPanda.

The next time your oven goes kaput, you miscalculate the bills, or another of life’s little emergencies occur, you won’t have to panic if you put these emergency savings suggestions in place.